CATEGORIES

EIGHT IS ENOUGH

Set 49ers lineup still has several new starters

Calling all cornerbacks

Loss of Verrett exposes 49ers’ thin depth at CB

Always finding their way to run

49ers system accomplished at developing homegrown talent

ANOTHER COMEBACK?

Resilient veteran Verrett to miss rest of season

TOP 10 Rookie running backs

THE BACK LIST

STOCK UP STOCK DOWN

DEOMMODORE LENOIR | AMBRY THOMAS

Will Mostert run for 49ers again?

Raheem Mostert was primed this year to be the centerpiece of one of the NFL’s most dynamic offenses, featured as the lead performer in San Francisco’s grinding rushing attack while making his climb among the league’s top running backs.

THE WONDER OF WARNER

49ers make All-Pro star highest-paid LB in NFL

Making the right choice at QB

In the weeks that follow after you read this — and perhaps sometime even sooner than that — Kyle Shanahan and the rest of the 49ers organization will make a titanic decision that will have present, future and perhaps even everlasting implications for the franchise. It will chart the course for the team’s pivotal 2021 season while determining whether San Francisco really does have the juice to return to powerhouse status and again be considered a legitimate contender to get back to the Super Bowl.

TOP 10 Linebacker seasons

Fred Warner vaulted to stardom with a spectacular 2020 season — and the 49ers rewarded him this summer with a $95.225 million deal that makes him the highest-paid inside linebacker in NFL history. By today’s standards, Warner’s performance last year was worth the money as he posted an Approximate Value of 19 — matching the highest score ever recorded by a San Francisco defender according to a Pro Football Reference formula that puts a single number on each player-season across all positions since 1960. Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman (twice) also had seasons with an AV of 19 as they dominate this list of the greatest individual seasons by a linebacker in 49ers history.

Birth of something special at QB

Lance becoming more than just a challenger in debut training camp

THE HALL CALLS FOR LYNCH

Legendary safety adding to his football legacy as 49ers GM

BOSA ON THE WAY BACK

Young star vows to return better than ever

49ERS STOCK REPORT

Taking stock of the 49ers by positional unit as San Francisco enters the heart of its summer training camp schedule and exhibition season, giving an indication of which way the team is trending in each area since the completion of the 2020 season.

Training camp tip sheet

A Super Bowl team entering last summer, the 49ers now find themselves shaking off a serious case of Super Bowl hangover as they converge at the team’s Santa Clara training complex in late July for 2021 training camp.

DEMECO FOR THE DEFENSE

Ryans plans to attack after taking over key role on coaching staff

TOP 7 QB competitions

The 49ers are headed for a battle royale at the all-important quarterback position this summer — and perhaps for the rest of this season, and possibly even years to come — as holdover starter Jimmy Garoppolo takes on the challenge presented by rookie Trey Lance, the youngster San Francisco invested in heavily to take Garoppolo’s job as soon as Lance is ready.

NINER NUGGETS

Richburg does 49ers right in retirement

CAMP BATTLEGROUND

Summer competition to get team back on track

SHOULD THEY STAY OR GO?

49ers have long list of decisions to make with their own FAs

TOP 10 Most illustrious assistants

When Robert Saleh signed a five-year contract with the New York Jets, Jan. 14, he became the 35th former San Francisco assistant to use his time on the 49ers’ staff as a springboard to a future position as an NFL head coach. Several of those men made a big enough impact during their time with the team — and then later leading other teams, with 10 taking their new teams to the Super Bowl — to be included on this list of the Most Illustrious Assistant Coaches in 49ers history.

CORNERBACKS

CORNERBACKS

SAFETIES

SAFETIES

EDGE RUSHERS

EDGE RUSHERS

LINEBACKERS

LINEBACKERS

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN

AFTERSHOCK

As if the 49ers didn’t already lose enough during their tortured 2020 season.

LOOKING BACK…

It was a season to remember. It was a season to forget. Either way, you look at it, it was the strangest of seasons for San Francisco that you will ever see. Looking back at the year that was to illustrate that point, The Niner Report has assembled the best, worst and most unconventional of the 49ers’ 2020 season.

TO BE DETERMINED…

49ers enter offseason with options at QB

TOP 8 Worst encore seasons

There have been plenty of tough acts to follow in the history of the 49ers franchise with a team that has five Super Bowl championships, seven Super Bowl visits, 16 trips to the NFC Championship game, and 27 playoff appearances. That kind of success has seen the 49ers enter many seasons over the years looking to take the next step to greatness or simply maintain it. That makes them fall and crash even worse when San Francisco failed to achieve those goals coming off triumphant seasons. The 2020 49ers know all about it, which lands them a place on this list of the worst encore seasons in franchise history.